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Jan 16th, 2012 - 20:24:19 |
You might say Miranda Bryant has always been a character. In high school, she was a member of the BCHS One Act Play all for years. Her roles ranged from Gertrude McFuzz as a freshman to playing Belle in 2010. It was a joy for her, a longtime Disney fan.
Another love of Miranda's is being around children. She's been a counselor in the Bleckley Summer Theatre Camp the past five years. Since May of last year, she's done character birthday parties. A chance meeting in another place where Bryant's been active, the pagent scene, helped her love of Disney and children to go to a different level.
She met up with Kaci Pedersen of Dublin at a pagent last January. Both won titles. Bryant, who had originally planned to visit the Children's Hospital last summer but couldn't, talked to Peterson about her love of Disney and love of helping others. Bryant had auditioned to be a member of the DisneyWorld cast but had not been accepted, said "God works in different ways.
Peterson would call Bryant and express a similar desire to reach out as princesses and other characters. She didn't have the costumes to do it. What Peterson did offer was contacts as her mom worked in the medical field. As Bryant explained "When we put our heads together, we came up with this brilliant idea."
That idea is Princesses With A Purpose. Started in November, the group raises funds for hospitalized or other children in need including foster children by participating in events like charity walks and fairs. The group lists 21 cast members on their Facebook page.
They accept donations of money or new items and will also visit with the elderly. In a nutshell, Bryant describes the Princesses as a "charity that wishes to demonstrate God's love by providing hope and encouragement to children and elderly in need of a mircale."
Bekah Bryant is Mirand's first cousin and best friend. Bekah, who was a cheerleader and current soccer player for BCHS, is a member of the Princesses group. She, like Miranda, is a Disney fan. Miranda shared her idea with Bekah. Bekah said it took "a little bit of push" from Miranda to get her involved though she was excited about the concept. Bekah's first appearance in character was during the Cochran Christmas Parade.
The Princesses were in Cochran's, Hawkinsville's, and Macon's parades and their float won second place in Hawkinsville. It helped win her over as she recalls "I saw how much joy you could bring to a little kid's life." Then there was the visit to the Children's Hospital in Macon where they met Kassidy, a child with cancer.
Bekah, who went as Ariel from The Little Mermaid, connected with Kassidy. Bekah described her as "our biggest fan" and caller her "amazing." Miranda recalled how Kassidy kept saying "Little Mermaid, Little Mermaid!" and added "I didn't think Bekah was gonna get her neck back because Kassidy was wrapped around her."
Bekah said she's always been a Disney fan though Miranda's been the more passionate one. However she said she now finds herself watching Disney movies over and over. And when a character is needed, "I'm just jumping up and down to do it."
Not only do the Princesses work for charity, they also work with other charities. The group is working with Rooms From The Heart, an organization that redesigns the rooms of terminally ill children with the theme of their choice as well as design it for the child's medical needs. As part of that collective work, the Princesses will be at the Fairy Tale Ball on February 18 in Macon.
Miranda said the group plans to do a "Princesses and Royalty" camp the second week of June in Cochran. She said the camp will be to "teach children what Royalty is all about. The camp (for girls and boys) will feature acting, dancing, skits each day, being taught manners, and will conclude with a talent show.
The Princesses are not only a local phenominon, they're also national. Thanks to Facebook, Tumblr (a photo-sharing service) and YouTube, they've gotten interest from other parts of the country. Someone named Isabella in California has been raising money for their work. Miranda said that if they could find the funding, they would be flying to Fort Worth Texas this summer to visit a girl named Anna.
Miranda said one of her biggest thrills has been seeing the joy of the children's faces when they walked into the room even if they saw through the costume. "Even if you see past the costumes, the makeup, the hair, at least we want to walk in and try to give someone hope. We want to give them the opportunity to see that there are people in the world who want to help."
Bekah said of their work "It's crazy how you can brighten someone's day." She feels like their purpose is to improve the world and said that when in costume and a smile is brought someone's face she said "I believe you've done something."
Bekah who said at first she thought it was "crazy" to go around in costume now says she doesn't care because of the smiles she brings to children who often don't have much reason to smile and says "I'm really glad I got involved."
Miranda hoped that word of mouth would continue to help them grow. One person gets involved and tells another. That person, though hesistant, also gets involved after looking past the unique nature of being in costume versus the good they do.
"When you look at the pros and cons, the pros definately outdo the cons." If you would like to donate or otherwise get involved, call Miranda at (478)951-7153. Email princessespurpose@yahoo.com "Like" their Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Princesses-with-a-Purpose/285466431484691 You can also check out the latest activities on Tumblr and YouTube.
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2009 by BleckleyProgess.com
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